An Islamist preacher from Kuwait has called to destroy Egypt's Sphinx and pyramids, stating it is time for Muslims to erase the pharaohs' heritage. The alleged call comes as Islamic State jihadists ramp up their attacks against historic sites.

Although the ancient monuments are not religious – but rather
cultural and historic sites – they should still be
"destroyed" by Muslims, putting an end to the worship of
images, preacher Ibrahim Al Kandari said, according to Al-Watan
daily.

@gcaw The nose of the
Sphinx went the same way. I.E. Islamic extremist.

"The fact that early Muslims who were among prophet
Mohammed’s followers did not destroy the pharaohs' monuments upon
entering the Egyptian soil, does not mean that we shouldn't do it
now," Al Kandari said.

Another call for the destruction of Egypt's main symbols comes
from Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who suggested the
demolition of the historic monuments is a "religious
duty," Al Alam news reported on Sunday. In the extreme
interpretations of Islam, no material objects should be idolized
or worshiped.

It comes amid growing concerns over the safety of many other
historic and architectural monuments in the region, where
militants continue to destroy ancient cities and artifacts.

Only last week, the Islamic State reportedly destroyed and looted
the ancient Assyrian city of Dur Sharrukin in northern Iraq,
demolished the remains of the ancient city of Hatra, and
bulldozed the city of Nimrud near Mosul. The assault on the
latter has already been compared by archaeologists to the
Taliban’s destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas in 2001.

In 2012, an Egyptian cleric also issued a fatwa calling to rid
the country of its pyramids and the Sphinx. The member of the
radical Salafi movement said he wanted the antiquities
demolished, as Prophet Mohammed destroyed the idols in Mecca, and
demanded Egypt's tourism ministry be abolished, comparing the
industry to "prostitution and debauchery."

Attacks on the Sphinx date back centuries. Despite many legends
surrounding the monument's missing nose – with harm from
Napoleon's cannon being among the most popular myths – historians
believe it was actually destroyed by Sufi Muslim Muhammad Sa'im
al-Dahr in the 14th century, after he learned that some peasants
worshipped the Sphinx.